Mario Kart 7 features a robust online multiplayer mode; possibly the most elaborate of any Nintendo title ever made.

Unfortunately, it still utilizes the awkward friend code system that all online 3DS games use (very few 3DS titles actually have any kind of online features).

Mario Kart 7 features a standard race and battle matchmaking mode that pits up to eight players, with similar in-game rankings, against other gamers from around the world. It would have been great to see the game’s coin runners (a battle mode where players collect coins) and time trial mode available through matchmaking, but unfortunately neither mode is included.

The recent opponents screen is great if you’ve played a few races with some awesome people; it makes it easy to find them again and set up a new race.

The game’s community mode is where things start to get interesting and unique. There you can create your own “community,” similar to a guild in World of Warcraft or similar social features in Forza 4. The idea is that you distribute a unique community number to people you want to be in your community, forming a group (the players in your community don’t have to be on your 3DS’s friends list). This gives you tons of people to play with, without having to clutter your friends list; it’s also very convenient.

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Apparently, Mario Kart 7’s community mode was supposed to be standard in all 3DS games at launch, but was delayed in order to rush the system to release. Hopefully, it is included in other 3DS titles as it’s a great way to navigate around the system’s complicated friend code system.

Any players contacted through the 3DS’s Streetpass feature (this connection happens, for example, when two people pass each other with a 3DS in their bags) and who have also played Mario Kart 7, will be added to the game’s Mario Kart Channel. However, communicating with these new friends is difficult as the game lacks any kind of voice chat.

I found this very disappointing; voice chat should be standard, even in online portable games. Without this feature, communicating with other players is next to impossible. Sending short pre-set one or two word messages doesn’t exactly work in today’s modern online gaming era.

I didn’t encounter any lag while gaming online and the title plays surprisingly smoothly. The Mario Kart formula is still as fun (and frustrating) as it was back on the Super Nintendo and the franchise’s new community feature recreates the feeling of racing karts in your best friend’s basement (without being able to talk to them of course).

Mario Kart 7 is a step in the right direction for Nintendo in the online department, and I can see the game’s community feature fostering a fantastic online group of players.

Hopefully, its superb community system is included in future Nintendo 3DS titles. It makes playing against other players online with specific settings an absolute breeze.